Bob++

Assuming that your friends have mobile phones. the simplest thing would be to park away from the terminal until you know they have debarked. Then use the collect/drop-off point at the terminal. The Ship and Castle pub, next to the huge yellow "Self Storage" building, has some parking spaces.

I agree. No point in staying in town since you need to be at the terminal by 8:30. You should make a plan though. Just wandering around will not be good value for the time available. Decide on one attraction you want to actually go to: Tower of London, Buck House, Westminster Abbey, St. Pauls - the list goes on. Whatever you are interested in. The HOHO busses are pretty good for a not too exhausting tour, and a trip down the river is also a good way to get to The Tower from Westminster. There are plenty of nice pubs for lunch and an evening cruise up the Thames, with all the bridges and buildings lit up is memorable.

So head to Dover, or better still, Canterbury. Canterbury and its cathedral is worth a day and Dover Castle another. There is also Leeds Castle within reaching distance. https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/dover-castle/ https://www.canterbury-cathedral.org/ https://leeds-castle.com/

Either. It will depend on the weather, how much luggage you have and how fit you are. There will be taxis, but don't cut it too fine if you pre-book your rail ticket.

It's generally expected that the coronation will be a fairly low key affair and there wont be a big military show. Most of the "action" will be in the Abbey and will be televised. There will be pressure on hotels in central London that weekend, but you will be gone before then. I would expect your reservations to be honoured. I tried a sample booking for the night of June 3rd in a West End hotel and there was no problem.

Canterbury as a city is an interesting place to visit, but the cathedral is something else. A guided tour is well worth the wait and the small charge.

Yes it is doable, but you will have to walk off the ship early with your luggage and have a hire car booked.

You are correct, but as our friend from Devon says, flying via Dublin is reasonably easy.

The following airports have direct flights to the USA: London (two main airports - Heathrow and Gatwick, but six altogether) Manchester. Newcastle. Birmingham. Glasgow. Edinburgh. How frequent and to which cities is for you to research, but if a trip round the Cotswolds, with Oxford and Stratford upon Avon appeals then Birmingham may well suit. I see they do have direct flights to LA.

I had a smile at "Mr Bull". He originated in satirical works of the early 18th century and would come to stand for "English liberty" in opposition to revolutionaries.

My wife has used wheelchair assistance through Heathrow several times. The porters are reasonably well paid and do not expect to be tipped. I imagine that they would not refuse one in any currency, but they do not expect it.

There are several ATMs in the terminal but they are not free. Bear in mind that taxi drivers etc don't really expect tips these days. It is usual to tip for extra help, but not actually required.

I suppose that "budget" means different things to different people, but I would put MSC alongside Costa and, to a lesser extent, Carnival as offering good value for money. We all have different criteria for our ideal cruise. For me, small is beautiful - 3000+ passengers is too many and cruises that are aimed at the family market do not appeal. But that's me, and I understand that others will disagree. Also that we all change our ideas as we get older and children leave home etc.

Using a Bath based taxi for both legs makes good sense. There is a vast number of hotels and guest houses in the city and you might do well to visit Bath Tourist Information https://visitbath.co.uk/ for information about where to stay and what to do. Expect to pay between £150 and £200 for bed and breakfast in a city centre guest house. I have no idea about which taxi firm to use, but a search for "Taxis in Bath uk" will get you a list

You need three or four hours for the castle. There is quite a lot of walking and it is pretty steep in places. You would need to pre-book the taxi back as there is no rank outside, but I think it would be doable.

I think that this analogy only works if the other driver failed to stop because their car was faulty and had just been collected after a service by a reputable garage. You would claim from the other driver and they would claim for your damages as well as their own from the negligent garage. It's easy to see how this could get complicated.

Okay. It looks like there are a lot of variations then.

Passports are rarely stamped these days. We flew from the UK to Madeira (a Portuguese island) and back a few months ago. No stamps at all in either direction. Passports were, of course, scanned and our travels are undoubtedly stored in a database somewhere.

I have no experience of these companies but they get good ratings on Tripadvisor. https://www.discoverdorset.co.uk/en https://dorsettours.com/

In my opinion, to do all three in one day is just a box tick exercise. Salisbury in one hour? It's worth half a day at the very least and you are expected to grab lunch at the same time. 90 minutes for Stonehenge is ample. They don't say how long you will have in Windsor, but to go there and not visit the castle would be a waste. All in all it does look pretty good value.

Or a private-hire car for around £160.00 at today's prices

I recommend that you head straight to Southampton. Why go to all the trouble of getting to a Heathrow hotel when you can avoid the hassle. Ether book seats on a National Express coach or book a private-hire car that will take you straight from the airport to to the door of your hotel. In the morning you will have time to explore Southampton and do any last minute shopping before you embark for your cruise.

Agreed. Of course they are promoting it and wouldn't want to make it look too tough. I looked for a more realistic video but couldn't find one.

JB gives excellent and comprehensive advice as always, but I have a little experience with travelling with a wheelchair to add. My wife uses an electrically powered chair, but can walk short distances. Yes, you will be able to get through the formalities at Heathrow faster, but you will be the last to leave the plane and if, as happened to us earlier this year, you are not parked on an air bridge you may have to wait some time to be lifted off. Whether to stay at Heathrow or go straight to Southampton is a case of deciding which is the more daunting: Tackling a 1½ hour drive in a taxi or 2 hours on a coach to get to a Southampton hotel, or having to stay the night and up sticks and travel to Southampton in the morning. I know which my wife would choose, although it might depend on the arrival time of your flight. Being met by a helpful pre-booked driver and driven to the door of a Southampton hotel would, in our opinion be well worth the cost. You would then, as JB says, have time for a leisurely breakfast and look around Southampton before boarding your ship. Southampton, in common with most of the UK has come a long way towards being wheelchair-friendly in recent years. Dropped kerbs at most crossings and level access to most buildings are the norm.

This video gives the flavour of the path: